


On the Outside (Always Looking In)

by Medli45



Category: Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Cookies, Fluff, Friendship, Gen, I wanted to play with the idea, I'll try not to have lots of Hojo but he's likely to appear, I'm not entirely sure how this will play out but..., Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Male-Female Friendship, Plushies, Shinra Electric Power Company Science Department, Slice of Life, but Cloud is there sometimes, climbing through windows, little Tifa trying to teach little Seph how to be a proper kid, more focused on Tifa & Sephiroth, no betas we die like mne, possibly drabbles, shinra mansion
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-04-20
Updated: 2020-05-29
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:14:44
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,492
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23755198
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Medli45/pseuds/Medli45
Summary: Sephiroth is under no circumstances allowed to leave the Shinra mansion alone. He's especially not allowed to be seen by outsiders.One day, when some children accidentally lose a ball on the Shinra mansion's lawn, Sephiroth breaks both of those rules.
Relationships: Sephiroth & Cloud Strife, Tifa Lockhart & Sephiroth, Tifa Lockhart & Sephiroth & Cloud Strife
Comments: 19
Kudos: 92





	1. Out of Bounds

**Author's Note:**

> Hey y'all! I've had this idea for ages, and it took me playing the FF7 remake (and procrastinating an essay) to finally start writing it! I love Sephiroth, but more for reasons different from why most people do. I like him for the potential of his character- who he was/would have been without Jenova taking over- which is why I've wanted to write something exploring his childhood a little. I realize most childhood stuff with him, he meets Cloud in Nibleheim one way or another....I wanted to put a twist on that. Tifa was alot more of a brave child, esp compared to Cloud, so I felt she'd be more fitting for forcibly befriending Seph in this fic :P  
> Also, not alot about how the scientists worked with Seph is really explained in canon (as far as I know), so there's alot of headcanoning and theorizing in Seph's background here...apologies if it doesn't make much sense??
> 
> Anyway, enjoy!!

They were outside again. He could hear them easily enough; they were always a noisy group. 

Sephiroth set down his pen, looking up from the written studies he’d been given to do for the day. He liked work days. Work days meant no physical tests; no labs, no needles, no Mako. _No scientists_. Just him and the paperwork meant to “train his mind”, locked in this small room upstairs. And reading books was nice; they taught him new things.

These were days either Hojo was out of town, or the science department had so much data to focus on they just...left "Project S" alone for the day. It was quiet...and to Sephiroth, quiet was good. 

Additionally, if he was careful, he could observe things through the one little window in the room. He enjoyed observing the _outside_ . Sometimes creatures would sit on the window-sill and he could watch them if he sat very, very still. Those were “squirrels” and “birds” as the books told him (he learned long ago it was dangerous to ask scientists about _outside_ things...books were safer). The “cats” would stay longer if he offered some of his rations to them, and even longer if he wiggled around a string for them to swat at. This was all with the window open just a little; he didn’t dare let the creatures in as evidence of distraction from work. Still…

Outside was interesting. The work in this room was peaceful and safe, but not interesting. Which is why the noises of humans bustling around outside often drew his attention. 

Sephiroth crept up to the window carefully, knowing Hojo did not like when he was seen. He pulled at the curtain, shifting it so he could see out into the world below. Across the lawn, past the gate, he watched the small humans- the children- laugh and screech in a manner that - after observing over time and reading more books- he now recognized as “playing”. They all stood in a circle, tossing a spherical object around to each other seemingly at random. The sphere was bright green, and reminded him of materia. However, it seemed too big and of the wrong properties to be materia; from this far away he couldn’t be sure. A “ball”, then.

He watched the children play for a long time. He observed the different patterns they threw the ball to each other, how they laughed instead of getting angry when it got dropped or missed. He tilted his head to the side in confusion when there was an especially loud burst of joyful yelling, and all the children sprinted in different directions. All except for one boy, a little smaller than the others, who stood there holding the ball. The boy looked around in bewilderment, clutching the object to his chest. He looked as confused as Sephiroth felt. 

_Odd. Outsiders know everything about outside procedures, don’t they?_

“Cloud!! Over here!!” A girl in a white dress shouted off to the side, bouncing and waving her arms around. The small boy jerked his head up in her direction, smiling a little in relief. He threw the ball towards the girl and ran in a different direction. 

As he watched the strange throwing practice with the children running around, Sephiroth felt...something. That something was a little warm, but oddly empty as well. He imagined himself participating in this “play” with these strange, loud children, and that emptiness ached. He frowned at the feeling.

“Johnny you idiot!!” Sephiroth flinched, recognizing the new tone as irritation instead of amusement. 

“It was an accident I swear!” wailed a taller boy, most likely “Johnny”, who was now pulling at his shirt in distress.

“Yeah but now we can’t play anymore. Go get the ball so we can finish our game!” demanded another child. Sephiroth looked down from his window view, spotting the ball almost directly below him...in the Shinra mansion lawn. His eyes widened. 

“What!? No way! That place is too creepy…”

“Yeah, isn’t the house haunted or something?”

“Not to mention the gate is locked, dummy!”

“But...we were having so much fun…”

As the children bickered, Sephiroth was having his own argument in his mind. Under no circumstances was he allowed to go outside alone. It was against regulation, and he would be punished severely when he was caught. …...If he was caught. 

The children sounded so upset. Not to mention, Hojo hated others infringing on his property. Would he see this as an intrusion from the children outside? Would he punish _them_ for this error? Something in Sephiroth’s stomach felt like it was sinking as his mind followed _that_ particular train of thought. Hojo’s punishments and corrections were by far the worst. These laughing, playful little humans wouldn’t be able to handle it…

Sephiroth set his jaw, his mind made up. The children were still arguing, some of them starting to shuffle off toward their homes. No one would notice as he slowly, carefully pulled the window further open. The window hadn’t been used much in ages, and he winced as it squealed a little. Careful….

The frame was too small for average adult humans to fit through, which is why he guessed no one bothered trying to block it off. Maybe they never guessed he would try and even go outside, as he would be leaving behind everything he knew. He’d occasionally considered running, but never seriously. But this...this was small. He had a good reason to just briefly step out today. He had a mission.

Sephiroth dropped several feet to the ground below, rolling in the grass to soften the noise of the fall. He had to do this quickly. He glanced around, locating the ball again. He scooped it up, marveling at how much bigger it was up close. He turned around, lifting the ball in preparation to throw it back over the gate--

And froze. The girl from before stood alone at the gate, peering at him with wide brown eyes. She was small, with dark hair almost as long as his, and she wore a simple white, lacy dress. She didn’t seem to pose any real threat. Even so, an irrational spike of fear went through him when she slowly raised her hand-

“Hello.” she called, leaning further against the gate bars and...waving her hand at him. It was a greeting, something Sephiroth had always seen the children do, but had never been on the receiving end of such. 

“Are you a ghost?” the girl asked. She frowned, looking at the ball. “Wait, ghosts can’t pick stuff up…..” she looked relieved, answering her own question. Sephiroth blinked, dumbfounded. The girl smiled at him, a tooth missing from her grin. “I bet you’re not. Ghosts are a lot scarier than you.” 

Not knowing what to say to that, Sephiroth decided to continue with his self assigned mission. He gingerly stepped forward, lifting the ball as an offering of sorts. The girl gasped, her smile widening. 

“You got the ball for us!” she exclaimed, reaching for it eagerly. He handed it over, glancing around to make sure there was no one else around. This girl was...loud. And he’d already been outside much too long.

“We were already going home coz it’s getting late. Still, Johnny’s Ma was gonna kill him if we didn’t get this--hey!!” The girl cried out in alarm as Sephiroth quickly whirled around and bolted back towards the mansion. Mission complete, he scurried up the vines on the wall and back through the window into his assigned room. He pulled the window shut behind him with a quiet thud. 

***

Tifa watched the blur of silver and black disappear through the upstairs window, back into what, until recently, she thought was an old, abandoned, haunted mansion. What a weird boy...she’d never seen anyone with that color of hair. It was the main reason she thought he was a ghost. Even his eyes seemed to glow green a little. Still…

She pouted, looking down at the recently returned ball. 

“Mean...he didn’t wait to let me say thank you….”


	2. Cookies

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sephiroth gets a surprise visit. Tifa gets to say "thank you".

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Y’know I looked at a map/screenshots of the ShinRa mansion and I’m kinda pulling from that, but I’m also making up my own layout since it’s my story and I can. Thus Seph has his own bathroom and stuff, it’s all very plain, and only one window. I should draw it sometime, how I envision it…it’s...basically a nicer prison cell (renovated from what used to me a normal bedroom with an attached bathroom) for when he doesn’t need to be under observation, but since he’s grown up in this situation he doesn’t really know any better. :/ 
> 
> By the way I envision Sephiroth around 8 years old while Tifa is about 6 and some months! I’m...trying my best to write them that way. Seph is already an unusual case….

It was dark outside.

A scientist visited him briefly, a few hours ago. She was the one who gave him extra rations sometimes; this time it was extra, buttered potatoes amongst the usual abundance of bland vegetables and other tasteless substances. Sephiroth had dutifully eaten all the food, drained the protein shake, and had placed the empty tray on the table nearest the door. He continued his studies until further notice.

No one else had come by since. Something tight in his stomach loosened at the realization. No one had noticed he left the mansion earlier that day. He would have heard something about it otherwise. There would be no testing today either.

Sephiroth let out a soft breath, then padded over to the small adjoined bathroom to go about his night-time routine. After, he turned out all the lights and tiredly fell into the small bed across the room.

When settling down under the covers and waiting for sleep, he liked to listen to the quiet night sounds outside. It was a windy night, usually a sign of a storm to come. Even so, he could still hear the cricket chirps, and some creatures occasionally skittering near the building…

An abrupt _tap tap tap_ on his window startled him out of a light doze. He rolled over and looked up. Was that...a bird? Perhaps an owl, or maybe-

On the other side of the window, there was indeed another pair of eyes staring back at him. There was little light to go by, but his sharpened senses helped him recognize the little girl he’d interacted with earlier that day. She was wearing the same white dress, a small bag resting on her hip with a strap running over her shoulder. 

Sephiroth held very still. What was she--

“Heeeey!” came her muffled voice from outside. She seemed to be trying to whisper, but it was still loud through the glass barrier. “Lemme in!”

Sephiroth winced at the noise she was making. This...this was wrong. He wasn’t sure, but he felt that her being here at all was breaking some sort of rule. What if someone saw her? Should he...chase her away? 

The girl continued to tap on the window, increasing speed. She didn’t seem to be able to see him in the darkness. The noise….he needed to stop that noise. He stood up and turned on the lamp beside his bed, narrowing his eyes at the girl in what he hoped was in an intimidating manner. She just smiled at him.

“Hey! Open up, I got something for you!” she said, pressing her hands and nose against the glass. It didn’t seem like she had any intention of leaving. 

Sephiroth steeled himself, taking a breath and unlatching the window. All his instincts screamed that he was making a bad choice with _bad_ consequences, but….his curiosity kept winning out. And this seemed the quickest way to get this girl to _stop being so loud_. He pulled on the window, and it slid up with a quiet squeak. The girl made an odd, excited motion with her fist, then shuffled forward.

“Hey, thanks! I just wanna ask-- I didn’t get to ask last time! What’s your name?” she asked, leaning forward. Sephiroth tilted his body back slightly to maintain a semi-comfortable distance.

“....They call me Sephiroth.” He eyed her teetering position, wondering if she might fall if she didn’t come in. He stepped to the side, and the girl tumbled in through the window. She sat up, staring at him.

“Seff-ee….that’s long.” She said, her face scrunching up in concentration. He tilted his head a little at that. 

“Sometimes they call me Project S.” 

That made the girl frown more. Was that the wrong thing to say...?

“Weird. Can I call you Seph?” She asked, smiling again. She held out her hand to him. “I’m Tifa.”

Sephiroth looked at her hand, trying to understand what she was trying to communicate. Scientists never did this...and “Tifa” continued to stare at him, as if expecting something. He began slowly raising his hand to mimic the motion.

His arm was partially raised when Tifa jumped up and clasped his hand in both of hers. He blinked, his eyes widening as she moved his hand up and down a few times in quick, jerky movements. Then she released his hand.

Ah...a meeting ritual, then. She seemed pleased, so he must have done the right thing. He stored this information away in his mind for later study.

“I wanted to thank you,” Tifa said, reaching into a bag on her waist. “You helped us alot today y’know! Johnny was really freaked out when we lost that ball. It was really nice of you to bring it back!” She pulled out a round, flattened object, then thrust it in his direction. 

Sephiroth blinked and took the object, staring at it. He turned it over in his hand, noting the rough texture and the dark brown lumps in it. He looked back up at the little girl, at a loss. 

Tifa wasn’t looking at him this time, instead focusing on pulling another of the same object from her bag. Curiously, she took a big bite out of it.

“Hope you like chocolate chip cookies! They’re daddy’s favorite; I helped him make them today.” She looked proud of this.

Sephiroth looked at the...the “chocolate chip cookie” in his hands. Were these...rations? From her outside world? They looked nothing like any food substance he’d had. Was it…. _right_ , for him to eat it? Tifa seemed content in devouring her cookie, did she expect him to as well…?

Mimicking the girl, he took a tentative bite out of the object, then froze. All thoughts of possible regulation oversteps fled his mind as he scrambled to analyze the taste he was currently experiencing. There was some taste variety to the rations he was given from day to day, but absolutely _nothing_ he’d eaten before tasted like this. 

It was like...a protein bar, but _better_ . So much better. It was...sweet like fruit, but a different kind of sweet. The darker chunks in the food were different still, even sweeter, and they _melted_ in his mouth. Together, he decided the tastes were….good. Very pleasant.

“You like it?” Tifa asked, having finished her own “chocolate chip cookie”. 

“Yes.” he mumbled through the food, taking more bites in quicker succession as he went. He must have done something amusing to her, because she was giggling now.

“I’m glad! I’ll try and bring more soon, then!” 

Tifa then started walking around the room, glancing around as if searching for something. Sephiroth finished the cookie, frowning. Did she say something about more...?

“I like your room. I guess you’re not a ghost, huh?” Tifa asked, stooping to peek under the bed.

“No.” Sephiroth had read about ghosts before. Recalling the information, none of the descriptions seemed to match up with him. 

“Yeah you’re just a kid like us. Even if your hair is weird and your eyes are all glowy,” she said. Sephiroth inclined his head slightly, resisting the urge to tug at his hair. She found it strange? It was true he’d never seen anyone with his hair color (unless they were much further advanced in their years than he was), but he just thought it was because he didn’t know much about the world anyway.

Tifa stood up, tapping a finger on her chin. “But where are all your toys? It looks like it’s kinda boring in here…”

Sephiroth looked around the room, not really understanding her question. She seemed to notice his confusion, and she huffed a little.

“Y’know? Toys? Things you play with when you’re bored? Or with friends?” She pointed out the window. “Like that ball you gave back to me? That’s a toy.” 

Realization dawned on him.

“I have none like that.” Sephiroth glanced at the shelves in his room. “Unless books are toys? I have many of those.” 

Tifa’s face scrunched up in the same manner as it did when he told her his name. He again felt as if he’d done something wrong, but was unsure what that was….or how to correct it. Sephiroth went to collect the world history book he had been most recently reading, closing it and offering it out for Tifa to see. 

“Pretty…” she whispered, tracing the golden lettering on the cover with her finger. The scrunched expression disappeared, making him feel a little lighter somehow. She wiggled her fingers at the book, and it took him a moment to realize Tifa wanted to hold the book. He handed it over to her.

“Heavy, though.” she grunted, wobbling slightly. Sephiroth reached out a steadying hand, becoming somewhat puzzled. That was nowhere near the biggest book he had; it couldn’t weigh that much. She flipped through some pages, and then sighed.

“Doesn’t look fun to read either. The words are too big.” Tifa closed the book and handed it back. “Also no pictures. Kinda boring…”

Sephiroth didn’t know what “boring” or “bored” meant, and filed those away as well to look up later. He returned the book to the desk, absently straightening up loose papers and writing utensils in the process. He felt Tifa watching him, but found he didn’t mind it as much as when scientists watched him. Her curiosity was odd, but not as unsettling as _their_ constant observations and painful tests. 

“Well, I thanked you so I’m gonna go home now.” she said. Sephiroth turned to find Tifa in the middle of a yawn. It _was_ late in the night. He was always tired at this time. He nodded.

“Yes.” he replied, not knowing what else to say. Tifa smiled and walked over to the window again. She stopped before reaching it, then turned back.

“Can I come back sometime? Please?” she asked. “I dunno why you stay up here all the time, but...it seems boring.” Tifa fiddled with the bag on her waist. “I wanna bring some of my toys. Maybe some books too since you like those. Maybe we could play together?” She gave him an odd look, her head still tilted down but her eyes gazing up at him; she looked….sad?

Sephiroth hesitated for a while, thinking. The science department had not seen his interactions with the outside as of yet, so it...should be safe, right? If this girl stayed quiet? But what if she were caught? _What if she got put through the tests, too?_

“It is not safe,” he said quietly. Tifa huffed, sticking out her bottom lip and planting her hands on her hips.

“I can take care of myself just fine, thank you!” she declared. Sephiroth winced at the volume of her voice. “If you’re worried about the wall climbing, I’m the best tree climber in this village! I haven’t fallen down for a _whole year_ now! Plus,” she threw her shoulders back in a show of pride, “I’m getting special mar-shall arts training from Master Zag-“

“Alright, yes, just--” Sephiroth leapt to hold a hand over her mouth, effectively quieting her tirade. He glanced behind him, towards the door leading to the rest of the mansion. Silence. He knew some scientists stayed in the other wing, and there was always the risk of waking them; something he _never_ wanted to cause again. 

“Just….quiet. Please be...careful.” he whispered, the initial panic draining to just feeling tired. Tifa blinked at him, then nodded. He let go and stepped back.

“I apologize.” Sephiroth added. She just stood there, staring at him. Something in her expression changed then, but he couldn’t determine what it was. Then she smiled, more subdued this time.

“Ok. I’ll come back tomorrow night, and I’ll be reeeeaaallly really quiet and careful, you’ll see.” She spun around and started pulling the window up. “I’ll bring some of my favorite toys and books, and we’ll have lots of fun.” 

Tifa climbed outside with an ease that did seem unusual for her age. She faced Sephiroth again, waving her hand back and forth at him. He copied the gesture, remembering the children from outside departed with that same motion. She giggled again, lowering herself from view. 

“Bye-bye Seph, it was nice to meet you!” she yell-whispered, and then she was gone.

Sephiroth stepped over to the window to watch her go. It felt like a storm had blown through, but not a literal one like the wind outside suggested. Even so, something warm seemed to glow in his chest as he watched her small form easily clamber over the stone wall outside the mansion. 

“Goodbye, Tifa.” he muttered, pulling the window closed and finally settling down to sleep. 

He left the window unlocked this time. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay update! I'll try to be quicker about future installments. I can...tell the style of some FF15 fics show through here (Poor Wayfaring Stranger, The Nettles were Silent, Berba's spinoffs, etc.) and I guess they are an inspiration? I'm not as experienced writing so I figured it was bound to happen;;;;
> 
> Please comment! I have ideas, but if there's anything y'all wanna see too please let me know! The more ideas, the faster I can write. :')
> 
> (not suuuure why my end notes from last chapter are showing up here...is that just me?? Idk)

**Author's Note:**

> Aaaaaa I'm not a very experienced writer, but this has been fun to work with. I have plans for the next couple chapters, but if anyone has ideas or things they wanna see in this kinda sorta AU fic, lemme know! ^^ Chapter 2 is almost done, and will be up soon!


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